The power of three
Three reasons why I walk four miles early most mornings:
🌿 To get my brain and body moving
🌿 To avoid the worst of the heat, pollen, and snakes (sadly, no joke)
🌿 To catch up on my ever-growing list of podcast episodes.
Here are three episodes I’ve enjoyed listening to on my walks this week:
🌿 Podcast: EY Sustainability Matters
Episode: How strong storytelling can help prioritize the sustainability agenda https://lnkd.in/gTVRxUv8
🌿 Podcast: Hower Impact
Episode: Navigating sustainability storytelling in 2024 https://lnkd.in/gekYzitb
🌿 Podcast: Can Marketing Save the Planet?
Episode: The role of behavioural science in nudging towards behaviour change
https://lnkd.in/gurakkTD
And three books on my nightstand:
🌿 Story or Die by Lisa Cron
🌿 Houston, We Have a Narrative by Randy Olson
🌿 The Future of the Responsible Company by Vicent Stanley with Yves Chouinard
Three is a magic number. Our brains are hardwired to view ideas presented in threes as inherently more engaging, effective, and memorable. After all, three is the smallest number that allows us to recognize a pattern. And if there’s one thing our brains love, it’s patterns.
Neuroscience shows that the brain's reward system responds positively when we recognize and predict patterns. This reinforcement encourages us to pay attention and engage with information presented in threes, making it a highly effective strategy for marketers and communicators.
This concept, known as the rule of three, is also a valuable tool in the sustainability report writers’ toolkit. It’s already common in concepts like ESG (environmental, social, and governance), the triple bottom line (people, planet, and profit), and DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion).
Going one step further, writers can combine the rule of three with alliteration, doubling down on the memorability of the message. That’s why you find sustainability reports with information grouped into pillars like Climate, Colleagues, and Communities or Products, People, and Planet. And why the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) are so effective.
And lastly, on a personal note, there’s a saying I learned too late after moving to the Midwest: “Leaves of three, let them be.” In this part of the world, it pays to be careful around unknown plants with three leaves connected to a single stem. They’re usually poison ivy, oak, or sumac—three plants with poison-carrying leaves that will have you itching for days.
Memorable in the worst possible way.